TOKYO/SEOUL -- Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono hailed a recent diplomatic breakthrough on the Korean Peninsula on Monday, describing the current situation as a "moment right before the miracle", South Korea's presidential office said.

Kono made the remarks during a meeting with South Korea's chief of National Intelligence Service, Suh Hoon, who is in Tokyo to brief Japan's top officials on his visits to Pyongyang and Washington.

In a dramatic turnaround on the Korean Peninsula, US President Donald Trump agreed last week to hold a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un by the end of May after Kim expressed his commitment to denuclearization.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Kim are also scheduled to hold a summit in April.

During the meeting, Kono voiced his "respect" for South Korea's diplomatic efforts to bring North Korea back to the brink of negotiations, according to a statement by South Korea's presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom.

"The current situation is a situation where the moment right before the miracle" is happening on the Korean Peninsula, Kono told Suh, according to the statement.